


Envious of One's Pride

by ChemicallyEnhanced



Series: TakaRitsu Week 2020 [4]
Category: Sekai-ichi Hatsukoi
Genre: AU where each of them is the 7 deadly sins, First Meetings, Gen, Light Angst, M/M, Not based off of the Seven Deadly Sins anime
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-04
Updated: 2020-08-04
Packaged: 2021-03-05 20:54:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,465
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25701667
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChemicallyEnhanced/pseuds/ChemicallyEnhanced
Summary: Onodera Ritsu, otherwise known as the sin of Envy, meets Takano Masamune-Pride-for the first time.Day 4 Prompt:AU/Free Prompt
Relationships: Onodera Ritsu & Takano Masamune, Onodera Ritsu/Takano Masamune
Series: TakaRitsu Week 2020 [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1858672
Kudos: 23





	Envious of One's Pride

**Author's Note:**

> for [TakaRitsu Week 2020!](https://takaritsuweek.tumblr.com/)
> 
> I'm keeping this completed for now, but I might continue it at a later date.

Onodera Ritsu had never meant to be Envy.

Before that accursed sin had latched onto him like a particularly wicked parasite, infecting his every thought and emotion with its green tint, he’d just been a normal guy. A guy who, granted, had a publishing giant for a father and the life of a fairly pampered prince, but—an average guy, nonetheless. It definitely came as a shock, not only to his parents and An, but to people he had never met, people he would’ve just passed by on the street without a second glance.

Now they _saw_ him, noticed him even when he tried so hard to hide himself from their prying eyes, as if they could just tell that he was someone unusual but couldn’t pinpoint exactly what made him differ from the rest of them.

His job at his father’s publishing company, gone. His life, ruined. His hopes and dreams, completely shattered.

So, he traveled.

He traveled to wherever would cast on him the least attention—a rather simple feat considering how much money his family gave him “in compensation”, as if something so material as _money_ could help him—but found no rest, no matter where he went.

At each and every location, regardless of whether it was the sprawling city of Los Angeles or the tiny city of Opatowiec, Poland, the sin of Envy would slither its way into his heart and force him to become someone he absolutely _despised_ , one that wished for everything that everyone else had despite needing not a single drop of it.

It had gotten to the point where he… well. Those moments were between him and the sin, which refused to let him go.

So, he moved on. And because Envy was so pervasive, so ingrained the hearts of every being alive, he managed to live much longer than any human had any right to live. But that’s not the story that’s being told here.

The _real_ story, the one that would follow Onodera Ritsu centuries into the future, was the one where he met Pride for the first time.

Pride or, as he was known by his co-workers at Marukawa Publishing, Takano Masamune.

* * *

Sometime after his last mental breakdown, Ritsu became a manga artist.

For what reason, even he didn’t know himself, but he learned the tools of the trade, applied for a slot at Marukawa Publishing, and got accepted before he could even blink.

_Were they that desperate for new artists or…?_ He wondered as he held his manga portfolio in both hands, making his way up to the 3rd floor where he would be meeting his editor for the first time. _Emerald,_ was what General Affairs had called the department with no small amount of… fear?

If the rest of the building seemed so afraid of the department, it was a wonder their turnover rate hadn’t been even higher.

_It doesn’t matter,_ Ritsu thought, putting a mental block up against such musings. He’d gotten surprisingly skilled at doing so after the first month of being able to read every single person’s envious desires. _If they needed a new artist, then it’s not my business to meddle. All I’m here to do is gain some experience, then move on to the next thing._ The thought always filled him with a bit of melancholy, and this time was no exception.

Sighing, he stopped in front of the _Emerald_ department and bowed with a terse, “Hello, my name is Onodera Ritsu, pen name Haruno Aya. Nice to meet you.”

_Right, I’ll only be here for a few weeks…_

When Ritsu straightened from his bow, what he did not expect in the _slightest_ was a room that looked as if a hurricane had swept through it. Books and papers lay in piles all over the floor, the few employees that were there seemed close to death, and the smell…! It would’ve been too much for Ritsu to handle had he not been in far worse conditions during his travels, so he simply stepped over a bunny plush on the ground and tried to catch the attention of the closest person.

“Um… hello?” He nudged the shoulder of a rather short male with dark hair and startled back when that small movement appeared to be enough to send the man—teen?—to the ground with a loud thump. “Wh—excuse me!” Ritsu announced to the person who was now struggling to even sit up. “I’m the new manga artist for _Emerald_ and I was—”

“ _Whaaat?_ ” The person finally replied, the trembling weakness of his voice sending a chill down Ritsu’s spine. He’d seen a lot, but this… was this man even alive?! “Oh, the new artist… Takano-san, your new artist is here… Takano-san!”

A person at the end of the room that Ritsu hadn’t noticed when he entered suddenly barked out, “Shut up, you’re loud! Tch…”

_Is this… the so-called ‘Takano-san?’_ Ritsu wondered, moving over to where the other man had a magazine covering his face. “Hello,” he introduced. “My name is—”

“Yeah, yeah,” Takano interrupted, removing the magazine from his face and replacing it with a pair of glasses.

Whatever Takano might have said next, Ritsu had no idea, for the sudden jolt of crystal clear _awareness_ that collided into him like a train blocked out every other thought, every other person in the entire fucking world until only the two of them could have existed.

_This man… this ‘Takano-san’—no, that’s not his name. It’s Pride. This person is Pride, and he’s just like me. We’re the same._ Thoughts rushed through Ritsu’s mind until he felt he would be sick with them. How many years had it been? How much time had passed since he’d become Envy that he’d been able to meet someone, _anyone_ , who could even begin to understand who he was, what he was going through? It seemed impossible every time Ritsu wished for it, but here was the hard-cut truth:

This man, Takano, was just like him.

“…oi, are you listening to me?”

Ritsu blinked back to the present and realized that it had been at least a minute since Takano had started talking. Encouraged and more than a little emotional at finding someone who could understand, he managed a polite, if shaky, smile and asked, “Ah—yes, I’m very sorry. What was it you were saying?”

Takano glared at him, but not even the world ending could dampen Ritsu’s joy right now—up until Takano said, the words cutting into him like a knife, “If you aren’t going to take this seriously, then leave. I have no time for people who play around and don’t do what they’re supposed to do.”

A strange feeling like lightning struck through Ritsu then. _Leave?_ _Leave?!_ How could he do that now, when he’d _just_ found another one like him? Leave? _Like hell I would,_ he thought viciously, idly wondering why Takano didn’t seem to feel the same as him. _He’s Pride, right? Doesn’t he recognize me? Never mind that, right now I need to—_

“Hah?”

“Oh, you’re still here.” Takano turned back to his work as if Ritsu had never been there. “So?”

Though there were many, _many_ questions Ritsu wanted to ask the man— _don’t you know who I am? Why don’t you feel it, too? Are you really Pride? Who_ are _you?_ —he somehow knew that he wouldn’t be able to get anywhere without salvaging whatever bits of a relationship they had now first.

“Excuse me!” Ritsu said, somewhat loudly. Takano didn’t look at him, but Ritsu knew he was listening. “I’m not here to ‘play around’, and I’m certainly not going to leave before I show you what I can do. So—” he quickly found a nameplate that read _Takano Masamune_ on the man’s desk, good to know, “—Takano-san, let’s work together to create a good manga!”

Breathing heavily after his little outburst, Ritsu noticed that the entire department had fallen silent—and not the sort of silence that came from them passed out on the floor. He couldn’t help but flush, wondering what had gotten into him just now.

“Oh?” Takano had focused on him now, an odd expression on his face. “I’ll have you know, I won’t be going easy on you, Onodera Ritsu. Nothing less than perfect is good enough for me.”

“I’ll be counting on it,” Ritsu promised, shoving his portfolio onto Takano’s desk in a flutter of paper before storming out of the department, unsure where this sudden hostility came from but uncaring as to its consequences.

_If Takano wants to compete with me like that,_ Ritsu, otherwise known as the sin of Envy, thought fiercely as he left the building, _then he needs to be prepared, because I’m not going to hold back!_


End file.
